SSTI Digest

With the rapidly changing landscape of AI-assisted technologies and related software designed to improve productivity and efficiency, SSTI is calling attention to an upcoming free, virtual demo day organized by one of our sister innovation organizations that might be useful for technology-based economic development organizations.

Tech Transfer Demo Day | Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) | virtual and free on Dec 8 | AUTM’s annual conference in San Diego next February will provide a great chance to learn about resources to address some of the biggest challenges for moving technology to market or helping connect research needs to research resources. Now, AUTM is offering a free virtual demo day to learn from some of their AI and software-related exhibitors for all commercialization managers. More info

On Oct 20, the National Science Foundation posted in the Federal Register an opportunity for the public to comment on plans to begin collecting data to inform an assessment of the Technology, Innovation and Partnership Directorate. Established in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 and comprising several well-publicized initiatives, TIP has three mission areas of interest to the TBED community: technology translation, workforce development, and regional innovation ecosystems. The register notice announces NSF’s intention to exercise generic information-gathering authority under an as-yet-undefined TIP Evidence and Evaluation Measurement Framework. There are no details provided in the public notice regarding what might be requested from recipients and focus group participants for each of the three programmatic buckets and how that data might be tested in future assessments. NSF states in the announcement that it will work those details out with OMB approval rather than through the formal public comment period.  

Innovation and skilled trades haven’t always been linked in TBED policy discussions, but AI and other technological advances have united the two in many areas. The Alliance for America's Skilled Trades, comprised of many large U.S. corporations, has developed a new dashboard to help policymakers understand where the demand and supply of workers and training do not match. Most importantly, the dashboard also scores which specific trades are seeing the most or least pressure. The dashboard illuminates that the mismatch isn’t limited to the fastest growing states. One can explore the dashboard here.

In this edition of Useful Stats, SSTI examines Survey of Earned Doctorates data to explore the most common research doctorate fields, the time it takes to earn a doctorate, and the percentage of employment postgraduation. The Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) is an annual census of all individuals receiving a research doctorate from an accredited U.S. institution in a given academic year. Note that professional doctoral degrees (e.g., MD, JD, DPharm, PsyD) are not included in the survey.

Georgia Tech and Emory University are investing more than $1 billion in artificial intelligence, with plans to expand computing power, prepare students for the workforce, and advance research in Georgia. The combined investment includes approximately $600 million from Emory and more than $575 million from Georgia Tech, according to the universities. 

The Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center will accelerate brain cancer and neuro-oncology research through the new Jeff Schwarz Center for Neuro-Oncology Research, established with a $10 million gift. 

Gov. Moore and the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) recently announced a $2.38 million federal grant to launch the Maryland Rural Pathways to Prosperity Network (MD Pathways). The four-year initiative connects nine rural community colleges and universities across the Eastern Shore, Western Maryland, Southern Maryland, and Northern Maryland. According to the press release from the governor’s office, “By partnering directly with local businesses and state agency leaders, MD Pathways ensures students graduate with industry-recognized credentials, paid workplace experience, and clear degree pathways in fast-growing local careers in healthcare, cybersecurity, aerospace, high-tech agriculture, and education.”  

The quick answer is "not really."  The latest PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor, which presents venture capital activity, revealed the industry invested $98.4 billion during the third quarter of 2026. But as SSTI’s past analyses have shown—and the most recent quarter’s data further confirms—the national VC market is overwhelmingly dominated by one technological phenomenon, artificial intelligence, and by the mega funds managing more than $500 million.

The Small Business Administration's (SBA) Regional Innovation Cluster (RIC) program is designed to strengthen industry through regional collaboration, shortening the distance between a small business with a product and the prime contractor, manufacturer, or buyer in need. Each RIC is organized around a single industry in a single geographic area. On October 6, 2026, SBA announced over $7 million to create nine new RICs.

With these nine newly awarded RICs, there are now 12 SBA-supported clusters spread across the country supporting small businesses in industries ranging across defense, advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, and more. Figure 1 below includes a table of all 12 current RICs, with past awardees highlighted in blue.

 

Figure 1: Table of all 12 SBA RICs, as of October 6, 2026

With energy demand and affordability dominant topics in the economic development and election space of many states, a new 50 States of Energy Affordability report from the N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center (NCCETC) is timely. A second in a new series, the quarterly report tracks 334 actions taken across 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico to address rising electricity costs since June 2026. Whether establishing new guidelines for utility profit-making, creating new metrics to track how utilities meet affordability targets, or requiring utilities better use existing grid resources, most states  continue efforts to rein in costs through broad policy pushes. 

In a new twist on federal support for rural areas, the Rural Business Cooperative Service within the USDA has issued a final rule in the Federal Register that the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) will now only compensate projects already “fully built and operational before the applicant ever applies. Applicants then apply, submitting actual energy production or savings data for the prior 12 months, alongside 12 months of pre-installation data.” 

Once viewed primarily as an economic development issue, data center growth has emerged as a major policy platform in this year's gubernatorial contests, with candidates from both parties advancing policies that place varying limits and regulations on data center development. And as the November elections approach, candidates continue revise their data center positions.

The cost of living is one of the dominant themes likely influencing voter decisions in this fall’s election, so it may come as little surprise for readers to learn that various states are depending on the ballot to answer some tough questions. Voters' answers to these questions could shape state tax policy and budgets for years to come.